Quick Tip: How to Mix Rap Vocals to a Beat ft. Sonnox Oxford EQ

In this one, I’m going to show you a simple, subtle move for mixing vocals to a 2-track.

So if you’re doing — I’ve got a Hip Hop tune here where the artist gave me a stereo beat, and then I’ve got a bunch of stacks of vocals, and you’ve got to kind of merge the two, which can sometimes be difficult, just depending on how well the beat was produced and mixed.

I’m going to play the track and then we’ll get into it. Here we go.

[mix]

So it’s a really subtle move. I’ve got this Oxford EQ, which is great. I really like the curves on this thing, and I have it on the stereo track, and it’s just a subtle — as you can see, pulling 2.3dB out at 3kHz, 3.5kHz.

[mix]

And really all we’re doing is making some room for the vocals to sit in the track as much as we can. Obviously, there’s not a lot you can do to a stereo track other than EQ and compression overall.

So if you do any moves, you want them to be subtle, because obviously you’re affecting the entire arrangement. So again, this is what, minus 2dB at 3kHz. Just kind of pulling out some of the edgier sort of energy in the top to let the vocal sit in the track, I suppose.

I’ll A/B it and then I may make it a little more drastic to help your ears kind of narrow in on it.

Here we go.

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[mix]

Right. Let me solo just the 2-track and do the same thing.

[beat]

It’s mainly in those bells. That arpeggiated bell synthesizer thing that’s going on. It just kind of helps pull that back a little bit.

One more time, with the track.

[mix]

That’s the trick. Again, it’s a really subtle thing. It’s a pretty subjective thing as well, so you don’t have to — depending on the track you’re using, you may do this, you may not use it.

Again, it all depends on how well the track is made.

But yeah, just a subtle thing to help your vocals sit in with the 2-track. Let me know if you have any questions, find me on Facebook, subscribe to the channel, like the video if you liked it, share it with your friends.